Sponsors (3)
Official title: Approve the settlement of the water rights claims of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, and for other purposes.
Introduced April 22, 2026 by Alejandro Padilla · Last progress April 22, 2026
The bill secures a federally recognized, quantified water right and substantial funding for the Agua Caliente Tribe and finalizes land and settlement terms—delivering legal certainty and infrastructure resources for the Tribe while requiring broad waivers of claims, shifting costs and responsibilities to tribal trust funds and taxpayers, and limiting some state/local control and future remedies.
Agua Caliente Tribe and tribal Allottees receive a quantified, federally-backed Tribal Water Right (20,000 AFY) and related legal recognition that secures water access and priority for tribal uses.
Tribal community gains substantial, dedicated funding (roughly $500M total plus an immediate $50M trust draw and indexed appropriations) and a managed settlement trust to build water infrastructure, groundwater augmentation, and long-term water management.
The Act produces final settlements and clarified titles/agreements that substantially reduce future litigation risk and legal uncertainty for the Tribe, Allottees, and affected water agencies, enabling planning and implementation.
Tribal members, Allottees, and the Tribe give up broad categories of past and future claims (including some water and pore-space claims), which could forfeit remedies or more valuable future compensation for harms not contemplated by the settlement.
The federal government (taxpayers) bears large upfront and indexed costs (roughly $500M plus indexing and discretionary repricing), which increases federal outlays and creates budget trade-offs and uncertainty for taxpayers.
State and local water regulators, water districts, and non‑tribal users face reduced control and potential limits on access to native groundwater because the Tribe's senior priority date and tribal taxing/fee authority can constrain regional planning and allocations.
Based on analysis of 14 sections of legislative text.
Confirms a 20,000 AFY federal Tribal Water Right, places specific federal land into trust for the Agua Caliente Tribe, provides hundreds of millions in settlement funding, and establishes a Tribal possessory-interest tax replacing certain county property tax receipts.
Grants the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians a quantified federal Tribal Water Right (up to 20,000 AFY), places specific federal lands into trust for the Tribe, authorizes sale of federal facility land to the Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD), creates an Agua Caliente Settlement Trust Fund with multi-hundred-million dollar transfers, and implements a Tribal possessory-interest tax in lieu of certain Riverside County property tax collections. The bill also requires mutual waivers of many historical water-related claims, directs environmental compliance and implementation procedures, and sets conditions that must be met before the settlement becomes enforceable. The law defines who may use and lease the water right (including long-term leases up to 99 years with Secretary approval), limits gaming on newly acquired lands, prescribes how trust funds may be used and withdrawn, and provides technical rules for conveyances, cultural-resource protections, and dispute enforcement. It sets an Enforceability Date tied to specified conditions (including appropriations, a final court decree, and executed releases) and includes an expiration backstop if conditions are not met by a specified date.